Actor lives a dream as Sheldon’s father
Lance Barber holds down a key role in the popular Big Bang Theory spinoff
Young Sheldon
Returns Monday, moves to Thursdays, CBS/CTV
Big Bang Theory spinoff. If there are four words that can set an actor’s heart aflutter, it’s those. Who wouldn’t want to star on a show linked to the most-watched and longest-running TV comedy of the modern era?
For Lance Barber, who plays the father of nine-year-old Sheldon Cooper (Iain Armitage) on Young Sheldon, the opportunity was golden, yes, but he knew the show would be able to stand on its own. “I think we have an advantage,” he says. “But we had to maintain that with our own merits.”
Debuting its second season Monday on CTV/CBS before settling into its regular time slot on Thursday, Young Sheldon strikes a balance between straight comedy and poignant family moments.
Barber spoke about the series ahead of the season 2 première.
Q Was it easier or harder playing a role that had already been referenced on The Big Bang Theory?
A I did a little research and I was aware of Big Bang, but reading the script for this show, I knew it was going to be different. The lens we see this family through is a different lens than Sheldon sees them through as a man on The Big Bang Theory. And the Sheldon narrating our show is an older Sheldon than the one we see on Big Bang — most people hopefully garner some wisdom and perspective and see their parents differently than when they were young.
Q Big Bang revealed that Sheldon’s dad died when he was a teenager. Does that affect your perspective on the character?
A I know I have a ceiling on this job. But if they want to keep George Sr. on as a Jedi ghost, sure! What I say is that if the show’s lucky enough to go until Sheldon reaches 14, which is when George Sr. is supposed to pass away, I’ll be just fine to carry on with something else. But at least I know! At least I have the comfort of knowing the ceiling.
Q The show’s set in 1989 — how would you describe the attitudes about kids who were different back then?
A We didn’t have the language for it then. We don’t even describe Sheldon in such language on the show, but now we do have words like “spectrum” for people who have social issues and otherwise, who are different, who are on the outside. The attitudes have changed, and it wasn’t that long ago. The creators of the show haven’t said in any sort of specific language that Sheldon is anything other than a supergenius and socially outside.
Q Do you have a favourite episode or scene from season 1?
A What I love to play are the moments that have a lot of heart. My favourite stuff has been often with the kids. Mary (Zoe Perry), and I have had some quiet, more intimate moments that were really fun to play.
Even in the pilot, Georgie (Montana Jordan), and I have a scene in a locker-room that explains our dilemma right out of the gate. I also had a scene when Sheldon gets cast in the school play and George tries to talk to him and let him know he’s trying to protect him.
Q What part of George Sr.’s story would you like to see developed in season 2?
A There are some issues in his marriage and we see hints of that already. George and Mary came into a family young and unplanned. They’re people who started a family before they got to know each other and became the people that they are, so I’d like to see more explanation of George and Mary’s relationship and the dissolve of it that’s probably inevitable.